﻿THE 
  JUNGLES 
  OF 
  PANAMA 
  

  

  137 
  

  

  ally 
  a 
  period 
  of 
  clear 
  thinking 
  in 
  the 
  cool 
  

   of 
  the 
  early 
  evening, 
  but 
  from 
  12 
  to 
  4 
  or 
  

   5, 
  there 
  was 
  a 
  pronounced 
  period 
  of 
  ex- 
  

   treme 
  fatigue. 
  I 
  wonder 
  if 
  the 
  physi- 
  

   ologists 
  have 
  analyzed 
  this 
  effect 
  of 
  a 
  

   tropical 
  climate, 
  and 
  whether 
  the 
  hours 
  

   of 
  employment 
  in 
  the 
  tropics 
  really 
  con- 
  

   form 
  to 
  the 
  hours 
  of 
  greatest 
  efficiency. 
  

  

  Hahn 
  remarks 
  in 
  his 
  Climatology 
  that 
  

   "high 
  average 
  warmth, 
  combined 
  with 
  a 
  

   high 
  degree 
  of 
  moisture, 
  makes 
  the 
  or- 
  

   ganism 
  sensitive 
  to 
  slight 
  fluctuations 
  of 
  

   temperature. 
  In 
  dry 
  climates, 
  on 
  the 
  

   other 
  hand, 
  the 
  organism 
  withstands 
  

   great 
  changes 
  in 
  temperature 
  without 
  ill 
  

   effects." 
  

  

  This 
  is 
  in 
  accord 
  with 
  the 
  surprising 
  

   experience 
  of 
  cold 
  which 
  one 
  feels 
  in 
  the 
  

   early 
  morning 
  in 
  the 
  tropics, 
  and 
  also 
  ex- 
  

   plains 
  why 
  if 
  you 
  stand 
  in 
  the 
  shade 
  at 
  

   the 
  edge 
  of 
  the 
  jungle 
  and 
  the 
  slightest 
  

   breeze 
  strikes 
  you, 
  it 
  gives 
  you 
  a 
  perfectly 
  

   delightful 
  feeling 
  of 
  comfort. 
  If 
  you 
  

   make 
  the 
  slightest 
  exertion 
  your 
  clothes 
  

   become 
  wringing 
  wet 
  and 
  your 
  glasses 
  

   are 
  continually 
  covered 
  with 
  moisture. 
  

  

  You 
  get 
  so 
  thirsty 
  that 
  you 
  feel 
  as 
  if 
  

   there 
  were 
  no 
  limit 
  to 
  what 
  you 
  could 
  

   drink, 
  and 
  as 
  the 
  cool 
  water 
  trickles 
  down 
  

   your 
  throat 
  you 
  are 
  almost 
  ready 
  to 
  de- 
  

   clare 
  that 
  it 
  is 
  worth 
  a 
  trip 
  to 
  Panama 
  

   just 
  to 
  have 
  the 
  experience 
  of 
  quenching 
  

   such 
  a 
  thirst 
  ! 
  

  

  Panama's 
  jungles 
  among 
  most 
  WON- 
  

   DERFUL 
  IN 
  THE 
  WORLD 
  

  

  The 
  jungles 
  of 
  Panama 
  are 
  among 
  the 
  

   most 
  wonderful 
  in 
  the 
  world, 
  so 
  far 
  as 
  

   vegetation 
  goes. 
  They 
  are 
  not 
  inhabited 
  

   by 
  tigers 
  and 
  elephants, 
  as 
  are 
  those 
  of 
  

   Burma 
  and 
  Siam. 
  They 
  do 
  not 
  have 
  

   gorillas, 
  as 
  do 
  the 
  jungles 
  of 
  Central 
  

   Africa 
  ; 
  they 
  have 
  not 
  the 
  rhinoceros 
  of 
  

   Java 
  and 
  Sumatra, 
  but 
  the 
  boa-constrictor 
  

   is 
  there, 
  and 
  they 
  swarm 
  with 
  those 
  bril- 
  

   liantly 
  colored 
  antediluvian 
  lizards, 
  the 
  

   iguanas 
  ; 
  flocks 
  of 
  parrots 
  and 
  parrakeets, 
  

   and 
  toucans 
  abound. 
  Droves 
  of 
  small 
  

   monkeys 
  live 
  in 
  the 
  tree-tops, 
  while 
  those 
  

   weird 
  insects, 
  the 
  leaf-cutting 
  ants, 
  cut 
  

   their 
  broad 
  pathways 
  like 
  miniature 
  high- 
  

   ways 
  of 
  travel 
  criss-cross 
  through 
  its 
  

   tangled 
  undergrowth. 
  

  

  But 
  it 
  is 
  as 
  rain 
  forests 
  that 
  the 
  jungles 
  

   on 
  the 
  Chagres 
  might 
  be 
  classed 
  among 
  

   the 
  most 
  remarkable 
  of 
  the 
  world. 
  They 
  

   are 
  produced 
  by 
  a 
  rainfall 
  which 
  is, 
  ac- 
  

  

  cording 
  to 
  Hahn, 
  nearly 
  three 
  times 
  that 
  

   of 
  Rio 
  de 
  Janeiro, 
  twice 
  that 
  of 
  Guatemala 
  

   City, 
  about 
  twice 
  that 
  of 
  Bangkok 
  or 
  Cal- 
  

   cutta, 
  of 
  Port 
  au 
  Prince 
  and 
  Porto 
  Rico, 
  

   nearly 
  half 
  as 
  much 
  again 
  as 
  Colombia 
  or 
  

   Hongkong, 
  and 
  considerably 
  greater 
  than 
  

   Paramaribo, 
  in 
  Dutch 
  Guiana. 
  It 
  is, 
  

   furthermore, 
  almost 
  double 
  that 
  on 
  the 
  

   near-by 
  heights 
  of 
  Balboa. 
  

  

  And 
  here 
  we 
  were 
  actually 
  in 
  this 
  mag- 
  

   nificent 
  rain 
  forest, 
  in 
  the 
  cool 
  of 
  the 
  

   early 
  morning. 
  

  

  A 
  MINIATURE 
  FACE 
  IN 
  THE 
  TREE 
  TOPS 
  

  

  Not 
  a 
  whisper 
  of 
  wind 
  was 
  stirring. 
  

   Bands 
  of 
  sunlight 
  crossed 
  the 
  trail 
  like 
  

   those 
  that 
  penetrate 
  a 
  darkened 
  room, 
  

   illuminating 
  the 
  very 
  air 
  and 
  making 
  it 
  

   alive 
  with 
  particles 
  of 
  matter. 
  We 
  stood 
  

   and 
  listened 
  and 
  looked. 
  

  

  So 
  instinctively 
  does 
  the 
  human 
  eye 
  

   catch 
  the 
  slightest 
  movement 
  of 
  an 
  ob- 
  

   ject 
  among 
  others 
  which 
  are 
  still, 
  that 
  

   although 
  millions 
  of 
  leaves 
  shut 
  us 
  in 
  on 
  

   every 
  side, 
  we 
  both 
  saw 
  instantly 
  a 
  mov- 
  

   ing 
  leaf 
  in 
  a 
  tree-top 
  from 
  behind 
  which 
  

   there 
  peered 
  out 
  at 
  us 
  a 
  miniature 
  face. 
  

  

  We 
  recognized 
  at 
  once 
  that 
  this 
  crea- 
  

   ture 
  with 
  the 
  great 
  brown 
  eyes 
  had 
  a 
  

   quality 
  that 
  the 
  insects 
  on 
  the 
  trail 
  be- 
  

   neath 
  our 
  feet 
  had 
  not. 
  Suddenly 
  we 
  had 
  

   come 
  into 
  the 
  presence 
  of 
  a 
  form 
  of 
  

   jungle 
  life 
  which 
  had 
  at 
  least 
  a 
  resem- 
  

   blance 
  to 
  the 
  form 
  which 
  is 
  covering 
  the 
  

   globe 
  with 
  cities 
  and 
  cutting 
  down 
  the 
  

   forests. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  strange 
  to 
  speculate 
  about 
  this 
  

   greatest 
  of 
  occurrences 
  — 
  the 
  arrival 
  in 
  

   the 
  animal 
  world 
  of 
  that 
  organ, 
  the 
  brain, 
  

   which 
  came 
  into 
  existence, 
  or 
  at 
  any 
  rate 
  

   found 
  its 
  great 
  beginning, 
  in 
  the 
  tree- 
  

   tops 
  of 
  a 
  tropical 
  rain 
  forest. 
  

  

  There 
  we 
  two 
  descendants 
  on 
  the 
  

   ground 
  stood 
  staring 
  at 
  the 
  tiny 
  descend- 
  

   ant 
  in 
  the 
  branches. 
  How 
  far, 
  how 
  in- 
  

   credibly 
  far, 
  our 
  pathway 
  of 
  descent 
  had 
  

   taken 
  us 
  in 
  the 
  thousands, 
  perhaps 
  mil- 
  

   lions, 
  of 
  years 
  since 
  those 
  days 
  in 
  some 
  

   tropical 
  rain 
  forest 
  when 
  the 
  first 
  super- 
  

   apes, 
  more 
  intellectual 
  than 
  the 
  rot, 
  

   broke 
  into 
  the 
  swift 
  pace 
  of 
  evolution 
  

   which 
  led 
  to 
  man 
  ! 
  

  

  And 
  how 
  that 
  creature 
  in 
  the 
  tree-tops 
  

   had 
  lagged 
  behind 
  — 
  so 
  far 
  behind 
  that 
  

   any 
  kinship 
  even 
  seemed 
  more 
  imaginary 
  

   than 
  real. 
  Yet 
  intelligence 
  was 
  there 
  — 
  

   the 
  spark, 
  the 
  something, 
  that 
  made 
  of 
  

  

  